Analysis: Where did Gophers improve the most in transfer portal?

The NCAA’s football transfer portal for new entries closed on Friday, Jan. 16, and while players who have entered the portal can announce their decisions at any time going forward, it appears the Gophers have completed their offseason shopping. Coach P.J. Fleck and his staff added 19 players through the portal — a few more than originally expected, possibly in part because of the name, image and likeness money freed up with safety Koi Perich’s departure to Oregon.

Minnesota’s strategy in the portal was to lean heavily on positions of need, try to find players with breakout potential for other key spots and develop competition to improve as many areas as possible. How well the coaching staff did in procuring talent won’t be known until the players take the field, but as of Jan. 16, recruiting-focused website 247Sports had the Gophers’ transfer class ranked 30th nationally and seventh among Big Ten teams.

Here is a look at how the Gophers built their portal class, listed in order of positions of most need:

The Gophers got great news when defensive end Anthony Smith capped his defensive MVP performance in the Rate Bowl (two sacks, four tackles for loss) by announcing he’s returning to Minnesota for the 2026 season. Fleck and his staff then hit the portal to bolster the pieces around Smith.

With starting tackles Deven Eastern and Jalen Logan-Redding and key reserves Nate Becker and Rushawn Lawrence gone, the Gophers hit the portal to add three interior linemen: Marshall’s 320-pound Naquan Crowder and 289-pound Sid Kaba and Florida International’s 295-pound Xion Chapman. Holdovers Riley Sunram, Jaylin Hicks and Theo Randle now will have more competition for snaps, and the Gophers will have the ability to rotate tackles.

Minnesota also got pass-rushing help to go along with Smith, Karter Menz and Jaxon Howard in California transfer TJ Bush Jr., who had 5½ sacks and 11½ tackles for loss for the Golden Bears last year.

Last year, the Gophers hit the portal hard in search of plug-and-play offensive linemen and signed Dylan Ray, Marcellus Marshall and Kahlee Tafai. Marshall and Ray started the bulk of the season at right guard and right tackle, respectively, but weren’t effective. Ray had a middling Pro Football Focus rating of 62.1, and Marshall had a substandard mark of 49.6.

Minnesota returns four starters in left tackle Nathan Roy, left guard Greg Johnson, center Ashton Beers and right guard Tony Nelson, as well as offensive line coach Brian Callahan. The Gophers announced Jan. 16 that Matt Limegrover, who was the team’s offensive coordinator and offensive line coach under Jerry Kill from 2011 to ’15, will return as an assistant offensive line coach.

This position has a new leader in receivers coach Isaac Fruechte, the former Gophers wideout and North Dakota offensive coordinator who replaced longtime Fleck assistant Matt Simon. Minnesota loses leading 2025 pass catcher Le’Meke Brockington, plus transfers Malachi Coleman and Kenric Lanier, but emerging star Jalen Smith and veteran Javon Tracy return. They’ll be joined by transfers Perry Thompson from Auburn, Noah Jennings from Cincinnati and Zion Steptoe from Tulsa. Thompson, 6-3 and 220 pounds, is the most intriguing as a high four-star prospect out of high school. He had 22 receptions for 280 yards and one TD in two seasons at Auburn.

The Gophers added four secondary players in the portal: Cornerbacks Aydan and Elisha West from Michigan State, safety Mekhai Smith from Lehigh and cornerback Parker Knutson from Southwest Minnesota State. The gem of the group might be Aydan West, who played 12 games for the Spartans in 2025. He could man the corner spot opposite John Nestor. With Perich transferring to Oregon, there’s a spot open at safety, and Smith, a productive player at the FCS level, could land the spot opposite Kerry Brown. Knutson, a Division II All-America selection, has the versatility to play either corner or safety.

The return of Darius Taylor was great news for the Gophers, who lost backup Fame Ijeboi to Purdue. Minnesota added Purdue’s Jaron Thomas, who had two carries for 15 yards last year, and Elon’s TJ Thomas Jr., a 5-8, 190-pounder who has rushed for 961 yards and 11 TDs in two seasons. The Thomases will add depth to a group that could also get a boost from a return to health by A.J. Turner, who had knee surgery early in the 2025 season.

The Gophers made a change in their special teams leadership, firing coordinator Bob Ligashesky and replacing him with New Mexico’s Daniel Da Prato, whose Lobos unit produced a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against the Gophers in the Rate Bowl.